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Tuesday, October 13, 2026
Available Now!! A Very Good Bad Idea by Emma Chase
Book Review for Please Enjoy Your Stay by Tara Goedjen
Please Enjoy Your Stay by Tara Goedjen
Published: October
13, 2026 by Atria/Emily Bestler Books
Genre: Mystery
Thriller, Horror, Supsense
When they were teenagers, Mia’s beloved cousin was murdered during their stay at an infamous castle in the Austrian Alps. As the only witness, Mia’s testimony put the killer behind bars, but it tore her life apart: the media accused her aunt, a controversial true crime author, of being involved. Now, a decade later, the murderer is appealing his conviction, and a popular true crime podcast starts covering the case, determined to exonerate him, and resurfacing lies about Mia’s family in the process.
Desperate to protect her aunt—and what she knows to be the truth—Mia returns to Austria. The castle is being revamped as a luxury hotel, and Mia gets a job as a nanny for the new owner, hiding in plain sight as she investigates, needing to set the story straight once and for all. But after someone mysteriously disappears on the property and sinister new evidence emerges regarding her cousin’s death, she realizes she might have accused the wrong man...and put her own life in danger.
My Thoughts: A castle
in the Austrian Alps has a history of murders.
The creepy, gothic, murder ridden castle is a perfect setting for a
book. Tara Goedjen did a wonderful job
taking the reader right into the setting.
I could picture the rooms, the views, the creepiness of the castle. I also knew that there was no way I would
want to stay there.
The multiple POV’s kept me intrigued as to what I would
learn next. I liked the fact that the
podcast kept up with the events and was a big part of the story. The past was interesting; it showed that
there was definitely more to the story back then. The present was full of drama and
secrets. It seemed that everyone has a
secret, a tie to the past, and a reason to be worried that they would be next
to die.
I really enjoyed the book.
I was entertained and invested.
There was not a huge pull for me to sneak time to read more but when I
read the book I did not want to stop.
Thank you Atria Books for a copy of the book in exchange for
my honest review.
Add to your MUST-READ list on Goodreads
Purchase your own copy on Amazon
Before writing books, Tara worked as a tennis coach (in Europe), as a college lecturer (in Australia), and as a fiction editor for a global publishing house.
She has a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Alabama, and is also the author of two young adult mystery novels: No Beauties or Monsters and The Breathless. Her short fiction has appeared in Agni, BOMB MAGAZINE, New England Review, and Fairy Tale Review, among others.
Tara loves traveling the world and talking about books. She currently lives with her family in the misty Pacific Northwest, where she can usually be found hiking through a mysterious wood while dreaming up her next novel.
Monday, October 12, 2026
Book Blitz for After the Fall by Wendy Roberts with a GIVEAWAY
After the Fall
Wendy Roberts
Publication date: October 9th 2026
Genres: Adult, Thriller
“This is an excellent read for those who want true psychological crime built around family secrets. Very highly recommended.”
Asher Syed for Readers’ Favorite__
Amber clings to the wreckage of a shattered life; a hermit drowning in the ghosts of what used to be.
When someone dumps a mutilated body on her wilderness property, a cryptic clue makes her the prime suspect. To clear her name, she must confront the dark secrets of her tragic past while a shadowy executioner is closing in.
Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo
—
EXCERPT:
When the blade of death whittled my family of three down to only me, I ran. Grief had scraped me empty, so fourteen months ago I fled to a shack in the northeastern Washington wilderness. I was seeking sanctuary and hoping the pines would mend my shattered soul. Maybe that was too much to expect of the trees. At least they didn’t judge the monument to my failure; a recycling bin overflowing with wine bottles.
The morning light struggled through my grimy windows and poked at my hangover. I took my coffee mug outside and stood on the splintered porch of the small cabin. The air was deceptively still and heavy, carrying the sharp scent of sunbaked pine needles and the silent, shimmering threat of an approaching scorcher of a day. My cabin sat at the dusty elbow of two dirt roads. Between my door and the ditch was half an acre of thigh-high, dewless grass that stood stiff and dry alongside leggy wildflowers and a single tree.
The western hemlock tried for the heavens at nearly two hundred feet, and it was the area under the tree that drew my critical gaze. A woman sat in the tall grass, back against the tree. What was someone doing way the hell out here?
With an eye roll I left the house and stormed toward her.
“Hey!” I shouted.
The strap of her checkered sundress had fallen from one shoulder and as I reached her, I lifted a hand to tap her arm. As my finger got close, a cloud of flies lifted and re-settled into gaping, torn flesh. The wind shifted direction and a thick miasma of putrid decay stung my nostrils. I stumbled backward as my stomach lurched.
Dead!
I couldn’t stop the tremor in my jaw; my teeth clattered together as I whispered broken words, “I-I should check to be sure . . .”
But my voice trailed off because nothing that smelled like that could be anything but gone.
Author Bio:
Wendy Roberts is an armchair sleuth, fan of all things mysterious but a huge chicken at heart. Her mind is often in the secretive, cloak and dagger world of intrigue while her physical presence is usually at home or on the road in her camper van. Wendy resides in Vancouver, Canada where she happily writes about murder and is always at work on her next novel.
GIVEAWAY!
After the Fall Blitz
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Book Review for Murder on 34th Street by Mariah Fredericks
Murder on 34th Street by Mariah
Fredericks
Published: October 6,
2026 by Minotaur Books
Genre: Historical
Fiction, Christmas, Holiday Mystery
New York, 1932. Grace Verlander is the secret beating heart of Macy’s. She’s the “assistant to the assistant to the someone who’s in charge”, the go-to person for keeping everything running smoothly behind-the-scenes at the famous, bustling store.
It’s not every day you get a letter from Santa Claus, but three days before the Macy’s annual Thanksgiving Day Parade, Grace arrives at work to find a note from the store Santa Claus in her someone has sent him a death threat. Shocked, Grace promises to look into it and speaks to the store detective about the parade’s security, confident that they’ve found a solution that will keep everyone safe. But on the day of the parade, despite all their precautions, a dead body is found in the holiday section of the store.
Using her wits and deep knowledge of the ways of the place, Grace is determined to find the killer and seek justice—not just for the dead man, but to save the reputation of this iconic store from ruin.
Steeped in glittering glamor and nostalgic wonder, this is a remarkable, unpredictable mystery set in the evocative world of one of New York’s most memorable institutions.
My Thoughts: Murder
on 34th Street is Christmas, historical fiction, and murder mystery all in one.
This might be the first time I have read these genres together in one book and
I really enjoyed it. I love the Macy’s Day Parade and that was a big part of
this book.
There are twists and turns in this book that I never saw coming. Who would want
to murder the Macy’s store Santa? The biggest twist… I had an idea that the
book would go there but it was so entertaining getting to that point.
Grace works hard to follow the clues. I liked that she questioned many people
but went into the questioning assuming they were innocent. She truly believed
in the people she worked with and wanted to see the best in them. She is a
glass half full person and someone I could relate to.
Thank you St. Martin’s Press for a copy of the book via NetGalley in exchange
for my honest review.
Add to your MUST-READ list on Goodreads
Purchase your own copy on Amazon
Friday, October 9, 2026
Book Blitz for Death Hits the High Notes by GG Calpo with a GIVEAWAY
Death Hits the High Notes
GG Calpo
(The Sweet TOOTH Murder Mystery Series)
Publication date: October 7th 2026
Genres: Adult, Cozy Mystery, Mystery
Trouble is brewing at Whitman’s Port Choral Society as choir members drop dead and Detective Jonathan Storm raises more questions than answers in his investigation. When Stefan, the choir’s soloist, gets weaker by the day, Meg and her friends take matters into their own hands. And if a murder investigation was not enough to elevate anyone’s blood pressure, Meg finds herself in danger tied to her past that she’s struggling to understand.
Will Meg and her friends stop the killer before Stefan becomes the next victim—and before Meg’s past catches up with her?
Join these golden-age sleuths as they follow the clues, protect their own, and prove that friendship is the strongest weapon against a killer.
Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / iBooks / Kobo
—
EXCERPT:
There were two new faces I didn’t recognize from last year’s concert. They looked familiar, though I couldn’t place where I had seen them before. The conductor stood in front, his back to us as he summoned the choir’s eyes to him with a few taps of his baton. He took a deep breath, synchronizing the choir’s breathing to his own. Gesturing with his baton, he released the soprano’s voice—rich, powerful, and throbbing with emotion. The beginning strains of the solo filled the auditorium. Holding his right hand at waist level, the conductor flicked his right index finger left, then right, counting the beats.
“That’s Amanda, in case you didn’t know,” Liz told me behind her raised hand.
I nodded and tried to stop my giggles when Liz’s shoulder hit mine.
“Will…you…shut…up?” Barbara widened her eyes more with each word.
Liz waved her hands in surrender, twitched her body deeper into the chair, took a deep breath, and closed her eyes. If it weren’t for the trembling of her shoulders, Liz could have fooled us with her pose of deep listening. But we knew her, and all she got from Barbara was another shove. Despite her unfailingly put-together appearance—manicured nails and hair always expertly cut and dyed—Liz hadn’t left her teen years behind. We must have been making a racket because a woman three rows down turned around and glared at us.
Liz and I looked at each other and decided to settle down and listen. I swayed, imagining my soul lifting in prayer, soaring past the lights of the auditorium and ever more upwards into the wide open sky beyond the school building. Then it happened. One minute I was up in the heavens, one with the song; the next minute I was crashing without a parachute.
The glorious voice stopped, leaving echoes of the high note ringing in the auditorium. A harsh cough sounded, jarring and unexpected. The accompanist stopped. The conductor jerked forward while the soprano toppled gracelessly to the floor, face down. Music scores fluttered in the air before landing gently around the stricken woman. A choir member huddled over her while the rest stared in shock.
“She’s not breathing!” The grief-stricken wail rattled my bones.
Barbara jumped up from her chair, her eyes fixed on Stefan, who stood frozen in his place, his eyes fixed on Amanda.
Amanda…who wasn’t moving.
I whipped my phone out of my bag and dialed nine-one-one. How long would help take to get here? Stefan moved to where Amanda was, kneeling to touch her on her shoulder. What was Stefan waiting for? Why was he not giving her mouth-to-mouth resuscitation? A few other choir members crept nearer but then backed away when Stefan waved them off. Start CPR, I wanted to shout, but couldn’t because the 911 operator had picked up my call.
Then the door to the auditorium opened, and in walked Edna, former third-grade teacher of Post Elementary School and the last of our group. One look at the stage and the woman laid out on the floor had Edna gasping, loud enough for everyone to hear, “Oh no, not another murder?”
Author Bio:
GG Calpo is a retired lawyer and accountant who traded contracts and numbers for the far more enjoyable chaos of fictional crime. Now she writes cozy whodunits featuring warm-hearted golden-aged sleuths who’ve seen it all, heard it all and will investigate a murder with zero hesitation. She loves stories where the stakes are personal, family and friendships are paramount, with characters who refuse to follow the outline and endings that pull the rug out. When not plotting twisty crimes—on paper only, of course—she spends her time reading, crocheting blankets and sweaters for her five grandchildren, watching mystery TV shows and taking long walks in her neighborhood. She lives in Central New Jersey with her husband and two corgis, Whiskey and Nugget.
GIVEAWAY!
Death Hits the High Notes Blitz
—
Book Blitz for Love and Other Cures for the Recently Undead by H.J. Ramsay with a GIVEAWAY
Love and Other Cures for the Recently Undead
H.J. Ramsay
Publication date: October 6th 2026
Genres: New Adult, Post-Apocalyptic, Romance
CeCe Campbell wakes on the asphalt of a mall parking lot with two missing years and a body that no longer feels like her own. Infected with the Kill Virus on her 18th birthday, she’s among the first to be cured.
Rehabilitation teaches CeCe how to walk, how to speak, how to exist in a world rebuilding itself, but it cannot return what she lost. Her mother is dead. Her brother is missing. And the last memory before the dark is a bite she cannot escape.
When CeCe unexpectedly meets Derrick—the boy who infected her—she’s torn between anger and a strange, undeniable connection. Derrick doesn’t remember what he did. CeCe does, and the truth of that moment is something he’ll never get. Not when he already took everything from her.
But if there’s to be life after the cure, CeCe will have to unwind the past, face what happened the night that bound them together, and decide if love and forgiveness can heal wounds deeper than the ones left by the undead.
Love and Other Cures for the Recently Undead is a haunting post-apocalyptic love story about guilt, survival, and choosing connection in a world where nothing can be undone.
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EXCERPT:
CeCe opens her mouth to ask for a ride, but by the time she gets the words out, Savannah is already jumping into the van. Her aunt pulls away from the curb.
Derrick looks toward the van and then at CeCe. He smiles. It’s probably meant to be charming, but she finds nothing about him appealing.
He steps toward her.
Why did she insist on walking home? If her dad was here, she’d already be in his car. Now she has to find a way around Derrick. Or maybe she doesn’t. She could wait him out. He’ll have to leave eventually.
CeCe turns back to the school. Just as she’s about to reach for the door, it swings open and Olivia slithers out. They’re so close that CeCe can see every strand of Olivia’s bangs—and something underneath. A scar? Does that mean Olivia isn’t a Survivor? She’ll have to think about that later. Not now.
Olivia inches to the side. The moment she’s out of the way, CeCe lunges for the handle, but it shuts before she can grab it. She yanks. It doesn’t budge. The damn thing’s on auto-lock.
CeCe presses her forehead against the locked door. Did Olivia do that on purpose? Knowing it would leave her trapped out here? She senses Olivia’s stare crawling over her—and Derrick’s.
She can’t deal with this. Can’t deal with them. Her hand clamps around the latch, unable to move. She just wants to go home.
“Hi again,” she hears Derrick say from behind her.
She groans. “Are you going to be here every day?”
“Ah, she speaks. I wasn’t sure if, you know, there was something wrong with your voice.”
“I speak,” she snaps as she turns, half expecting to see Olivia standing beside him, but she’s already down the stairs, heading toward the same rumbling truck. At least that’s one problem solved.
Author Bio:
HJ Ramsay holds an MFA in Creative Writing and is an award-winning author. She is the Editor-in-Chief of Gold Man Review, a West Coast literary journal, and has a background in Psychology and Criminal Justice with dual bachelor’s degrees. Passionate about storytelling that explores the human experience, she crafts narratives that blend emotion, imagination, and depth. When she’s not writing or editing, she enjoys diving into the worlds of speculative fiction and literary fiction alike.
GIVEAWAY!
Love and Other Cures for the Recently Undead Blitz
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Book Review for Mistletoe All the Way by Lauren Blakely
Evergreen Falls
#3
Mistletoe All the Way by Lauren
Blakely
Published: October 6,
2026 by Atria Books
Genre: Holiday
Romance, Christmas
Dr. Noah Lennox has three Christmas rules—avoid his hometown, avoid being mistaken for his internet-famous twin, and definitely avoid his smug cousin, Stephen. But when his beloved grandfather announces he’s retiring and leaving the family’s beloved sleigh-ride horse farm to either Noah or Stephen, Noah finds himself snowed in back home in Evergreen Falls and determined to fight for the place that means everything to him. The problem is, the town doesn’t exactly welcome its resident Scrooge with open arms.
Eloise Langston, a sunny Tourism Bureau hopeful, needs a win to land her dream job—and health insurance. Her Hail Mary plan? Turn Noah into Mr. Christmas to help the town’s Mr. Holiday Pageant draw record crowds. Transforming a camera-shy cowboy vet into a small-town sweetheart isn’t exactly in her job description—but neither is falling for him.
As sleigh bells ring and sparks fly, Noah and Eloise find themselves tangled in twinkle lights, fake pageants, and one very real attraction. But with the farm’s future at stake, Stephen's scheming, and Eloise’s own career on the line, there’s a blizzard of reasons to put their growing feelings on ice. Then again, if you can’t fight for love at the most wonderful time of the year, you don’t deserve the kiss waiting under the mistletoe.
My Thoughts: Lauren
Blakely wrote a cozy Christmas romance set in a small town full of Christmas
spirit. I love the town’s residents and how they spread their cheer without
holding back. The Mr. Holiday contest involved the entire town but featured
just a few men, who were all wanting the title for different reasons.
Noah entered to prove to his grandfather that he is the right person to leave
the family business to. Little did he know how much the contest would change
his outlook and improve his life. With Eloise’s help he has a real shot at
winning and getting the family business.
Mistletoe All the Way is a grumpy/sunshine Christmas romance. There is a
mystery to solve, some twists and turns that surprised me…especially the
ending. I enjoyed this book, even reading it while the temperatures were in the
80’s in my town. There is never a wrong time to read a Christmas book.
Thank you to the author for a copy of the book via NetGalley in exchange for my
honest review.
Add to your MUST-READ list on Goodreads
Purchase your own copy on Amazon
Thursday, October 8, 2026
Release Blitz for Off the Post by Sierra Hill
Off the Post by Sierra Hill is now live!
Her sunshine is a game winning shot against this grumpy goalie.
What fans don’t know about Vikings’ goalie Soren ‘the Wolf’ Wolfenspiel is that he hides behind the mask of grumpy loner to protect himself from the pain of emotional connection.
That way, he won’t get hurt again.
But then he meets his teammate’s sister, Ali St. Francis.
Ali’s move to Vancouver to work for her brother’s foundation is her new lease on life. She wants to bury herself in her new job and forget about the mistakes of her past.
When she recruits her brother’s teammates to raise money using their celebrity status, she finds herself engaging the reluctant and enigmatic goalie to participate.
It doesn’t take long for Ali’s sunshine in a bottle to melt the icy veneer of the goalie.
But will their casual (and secret) fling threaten to turn into something more and snare this lone wolf in his very own net?
Download today!
Amazon US: https://bit.ly/4wsacV9
Apple Books: https://bit.ly/4c4eqKa
Nook: https://bit.ly/3RTBMeO
Kobo: https://bit.ly/4x5xvnB
Goodreads: https://bit.ly/4woQGbQ
Cover Reveal for Captain Meets Captain by Lottie McLaren
Captain Meets Captain
Lottie McLaren
Publication date: November 16th 2026
Genres: Adult, Comedy, Contemporary, Romance, Sports
Synopsis:Atlas
Did I mean to rant on TV about the inconvenience of sharing the ice with San Jose’s brand-new women’s hockey team?
No, of course not. I’m not an idiot, whatever my second-grade teacher might have written in my quarterly progress reports.
But I probably should have noticed my teammates’ frantic arm movements. And I definitely shouldn’t have blurted out that I’m actually supportive of women’s hockey because I’m dating Diana Marsh, the captain of the San Jose Pumas.
Because the fact is… we’re not dating. Even if maybe we sort of did, uh, sleep together. Before I ghosted her.
But now our teams’ billionaire owner is eager for our ‘romance’ to be public, and since my face is all over his health app, I can’t say no to him.
Besides, the Pumas will get publicity, and my reputation as captain of the San Jose Jackals will be salvaged.
Hopefully.
Once I explain the fake dating plan to Diana.
—
Book Review for Where There's Smoke by Rachel Louise Adams
Coldren
County #2
Where There's Smoke by Rachel
Louise Adams
Published: October 6,
2026 by Minotaur Books
Genre: Mystery,
Horror, Thriller, Suspense
Dolores doesn’t have much in the way of work, but that all changes when a body is found at the local slaughterhouse. Benedict Marcy owned Marcy’s Meats, and is affectionately called Mr. Mercy across the region. This high-profile case quickly catches the attention of Dolores’s friends at the FBI.
From the very beginning, this case is full of contradictions and surprises, and the team quickly learns someone is willing to go to extreme lengths to stop them from finding out the truth behind Benedict Marcy’s murder.
My Thoughts:
Where There’s Smoke pulled me in from the first page and never let me
go. I felt like I was on a twisty turny
adventure that I did not want to ever end.
The story moved at a fast pace and never slowed down.
I do not read horror but this one was more dark thriller
suspense. When I say dark, I mean pitch
black dark. A murder in a slaughter
house… does it get darker than that?
Thank you Minotaur
Books for a copy of the book via
NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.
Add to your MUST-READ list on Goodreads
Purchase your own copy on Amazon